Thursday, June 10, 2010

Eldora Charity Race Scores Again

Wednesday night brought Tony Stewart's annual Prelude to the Dream charity race run at the Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, OH.

Let's talk about some topics that were raised before the event. It was shown in SD because the HD television equipment is just too expensive for this type of one-time charity event. The event was offered on pay-per-view on both cable and satellite dish.

The event is not currently scheduled to re-air on SPEED, but perhaps there will be some information released a bit later that might reveal that the show will be seen again. Getting the fans to the PPV live event was the original idea.

This Wednesday night show raises money for several charities. Click here for more details on the charities involved and the list of sponsors. The TV people who work on this event also donated their time. Marty Reid joined Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds in the booth. Dick Berggren and Matt Yocum worked in the garage area.

This is a fun event and Hendrick crew chief Steve Letarte was trying his hand at pit reporting. This was a nice opportunity for fans to see a very different side of Letarte that was not tied to Jeff Gordon's NASCAR issues.

Racing on dirt is an interesting experience for TV viewers. Even the concept of heat races is new to some NASCAR fans. It was nice to see once again camera views that showed this type of racing to fans in a positive way. Perhaps, that might translate to some folks checking out the local short track in their area this summer.

If you watched this event, how about some comments. What would you like to see added to the program in the future and how did you enjoy it? To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thanks for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.

Maybe next year Tony can swing it so the race can be broadcast in HD. It's a bummer watching SD on an HD screen due to the blurriness. Better lighting at the track might help distinguish one car from another, especially when the track is really dusty, if HD is not possible.

Enjoyed listening to Marty Reid doing PxP although sometimes Larry Mac and DW would interrupt him and start doing PxP. Marty kept up with the action on the track and had the right amount of excitement in his voice.

I was pleasantly surprised at how well Steve Letarte performed as a garage reporter-- he was a natural behind the microphone.

I've watched this race every year and it's good entertainment for a great cause. Thought the new team set-up with the 4 charities involved was a good idea because every driver's finish played a role in the outcome as to which team won the race.

I always love watching the Prelude and the fact that it's for charity makes it all the better. But, again it was DW overload. That man just cannot shut up and I wound up turning off the sound and just watching the race.

When this race first started, it really seemed like a lot of fun. Now it seems very corporate, very produced, very mechanical, and not nearly as exciting. It's fun to see numbers and sponsors you know sideways on dirt... but some of the local flavor that made the Prelude so much fun has been erased as it's been turned into a SPEED TV event that looks like just about every other broadcast, right down to the announcers. The first time they brought in Joy and DW and Larry it was kinda fun, like hey here are the Cup guys to call this race. Now it's like - ugh - it's just another FOX broadcast. And by the way, I love FOX and DW... they just don't belong here.

Best thing they could do to this next year is bring in local announcers, make the camera work more simple, take some of the polish off the production and give this race back the small town feel that makes it unique.

With 5 laps to go, I realized I had been grinning all night. Thoroughly enjoyed the racing and seeing all these guys having so much fun. I liked the team concept because even though Johnson couldn't be reeled in, the finish of the other drivers remained important. Stewart accepting the $50,000 challenge, and almost pulling it off, was really cool.Finally, Marty Reid is the man! He was respectful to Waltrip, but still kept the booth on track.

This has become a favorite summer event for me. I'd love to actually attend one time, but until then, seeing it on TV is great.

Marty Reid did a nice job in the booth -- I'm still tired of DW and Larry Mac so I wasn't happy to see them - DW was waxing poetic over "Rowdy". I get it, Kyle can drive, but DW needs to put a sock in it. End of grousing.

It was fun to Steve Letarte doing something "new". I liked Ray's comments that Steve was after his job in broadcasting. I thought Steve did a good job for his first time as a pit reporter.

Other than that, the camera work was great, the racing was fun, they did lots of driver interviews and everyone was relaxed and it was nice to see so much effort for this charity event.

There have been many complaints about the camera work before, but I wonder if this person ever gets tired of the constant changing of the cameras with no dialog from the booth to follow up on what we are being shown. Its enough to give you a headache. Why is it so hard to show camera angles like what a fan in the stands would watch if they were at the track? No person could possibly jump around like these pictures and keep track of anything. They give you shots of things that make no sense as to the flow of the race. How could you possibly miss the action at the front of the show in the closing laps? That was an awesome last restart and we never saw it live, what are they thinking?

That said, I wish to thank each and everyone who gave their time and effort to this event. I love racing, and nothing is better than watching the worlds best have fun on dirt. The drivers and crews had so much fun, it was electric to watch, and it reminded me how much fun racing is really supposed to be.

Tony Stewart has reminded us all how great true racing is, and I hope it does well for the all the local and national events.

What I don't understand is why does Speed not pay for the rights to televise this ebent live. I watched all the pre race shows and when they were over that was it for me. Would Speed not pay more in fees that Stewart generates with pay per view?

I love this race. I buy it every year because the $ go to charity and it is so much fun to watch. I'd love to make it out there in person one year.

the only fly in the ointment was that there was too much DW. I liked Marty's input in the booth, but I've obviously am on overload with DW & Larry Mac - enough already.

Other than that, Steve Letarte did a nice job of being a pit reporter. It was fun to watch him interview Ray and Jeff and he did a good job.

it was a fun night of racing and I'm really glad the weather was good for the event this year. Wish my guy had a better finish but this is the reason I started watching racing - it was fun! Kudos to Tony Stewart for having this event every year. I do agree in a way with one of the other posters -- its getting a little TOO corporate, but its still fun.

It was also fun watching Steve interview the other drivers, especially Matt Kenseth. Matt had this amused look on his face, like "what is Jeff Gordon's crew chief doing asking me questions?" I kept wondering if he'd ask Steve to tell Jeff to quit spinning him out! Good stuff.

Which reminds me, it was very evident that an effort was made to refrain from bringing up any lingering "issues" from Pocono, which was refreshing. It was all about last night and how much fun they were having. Soon enough, we will get to Michigan and hear and see 100 times the replay of the last lap and pit road incidents.

Would like to have seen the show but when we heard DW would be in the booth we lost all intrest.Too bad they just allow him to keep chasing people away. I'm sure there were many of us who felt the same way.

Loved it. Since it is a charity event with everything donated, I have no complaints. Steve L. has a future in broadcasting...very natural. Loved just seeing everyone in a relaxed atmosphere racing for fun and charity.

I have bought this race for the last 4 years. I love it. Reminds of going to the local dirt track, all the time when I was growing up. Track is gone now (East Windsor Speedway in NJ). I still miss it! I would love to see this race live one day!! The one and only problem I had with it, is DW! ! The man talks too much, and is way too bias for me. His love/hate for certain drivers gets old fast! All will be well when they get rid of DW! Get Kyle Petty back please! Steve was awesome in the pits! The racing was great! And how much fun the drivers have doing this is obvious! That makes it even better cause love seeing that!